Fan



Sept. 9, 1941. i M. LIGHTER FAN Filed April 6, 1939 I 1.... .rlllliffalflvl Patented Sept. 9, 1941 'Unire srarss Para Malvin Lichter, New York, N. Y., assignor to Stickless Corporation, New York, N. Y., a cor-r poration of New York I Application April 6, 1959, serial Nov.l 266,237

i cram. (ol. 23e-26e) In those patents I disclose a eXible fan blade so shaped as to provide a handle therefor, a perforation in the handle portion to receive the thumb and thereby facilitate the use of the fan,

and reinforcing strips adjacent the end of the handle to provide maximum stiffness at the point of wear. It has'since been found that when the perforation in the handle is used as intended and the thumb inserted therethrough, the pressure of the thumb at the base of the perforation and the perspiration of the hand eventually causes a weakening and a consequent tearing at the lower portion of the perforation thus materially lessening the utility of the fan.

My present invention contemplates a reinforcement for the handle portion of the fan, which reinforcement is further positioned to reinforce the perforation of the handle, the said reinforcement being so shaped that a plurality of such reinforcements may be cut from a single blank without any waste material,

Other objects and uses of my invention will be obvious in the following description and drawing in which:

Figure 1 is a plan view of the back of my improved fan.

Figure 2 is a plan view of the front of my improved fan.

Figure 3 is a plan View of a blank showing the manner in which a plurality of back reinforcements may be cut from a single blank.

Figure 4 is a plan View of a blank showing the manner in which a plurality of front reinforcements may be out from a single blank; and

Figure 5 is a cross sectional View taken along the lines 5 5 of Figures 1 and 2.

Referring now to Figure 1 my fan comprises a blade I suitably shaped and formed to pro- Vide a maximum air displacing area. The blade III is provided with a projecting portion Il suitably shaped, curved and formed to fit the palm of a hand when the fan is grasped in the usual manner. A perforation I2 is provided in the palm or handle portion I I of the blade to receive the thumb of the user. Thus far the fan blade is constructed in the manner described in my Patent No. 1,444,978 issued February 2, 1923. It has been found, however, that when the fan is thus used, perspiration and wear causes the base I3 of said perforation to wear away and tear, thus decreasing the utility of the fan.

Consequently, I have found ythat by the use of a handle member I4 on the back of the fan I may not only reinforce the handle portion II and the main portionY of the blade" I0 but I also reinforce the edge I3 of the-perforation I2 in order to obviatefthe type of Wear described. n Acoordingly, my handle reinforcing member Il! comprises a main portion I5, two arm portions IS, .I6 extending Vfrom thema-in portion I5 into the area of the blade ID. .Bythismeans a rigidifying stiffening member is provided between the handle II and the blade IIJ thus tending to prevent any bending to which the blade IIJ might have been subjected by the constant vibration thereof by the handle I I.

Since the handle I I is grasped at the end below the perforation, constant vibration may tend to cause a bend in the fan blade at approximately in the area indicated by the arrow I1. The eX- tension of the portions lli-I6 into the blade area provides for such necessary stiffness as to obviate this result. The base of main portion I5 of the handle reinforcement I4 also comprises a part circular portion I8 adapted to fit around the lower portion I3 of the edge of the perforation I2, thereby providing the necessary and indispensable reinforcement at that area. By this means the fan itself is not only stiffened and the handle II is not only provided with a rigidifying member which will resist the wear and perspiration to which it is subjected in use, but the perforation also is reinforced at the point of wear and the life of the fan is thereby greatly increased.

The member I4 as seen in Figure 3 is so shaped as to the top and bottom therefrom, that a plurality thereof may be cut from a single rectangu- 'lar blank without any waste. To accomplish this the piece I9 of the base I5 is so shaped as to complement the portion I8 thereof. The shape of the reinforcement thus tends not merely to reinforce the handle but also serves to provide an ornamental appearance as well.

The front of the fan `as shown in Figure 2 may consist of simple reinforcement member 23 adhesively bound to the handle portion I I of the blade I0, said reinforcing member 20 being formed substantially like the reinforcing member I4 but not necessarily having the perforation reinforcing portions I8. As is obvious, a plurality of such members 29 may be out from a single blank as seen in Figure 4 without any appreciable waste.

As seen in Figure 5 the reinforcing members I 4 and 20 are adhesively bound to the blade I 0 at the handle portion II, the blade thus being sandwiched between them, the perforation I2 being reinforced by the base I8 of the reinforcing member I4.

Heretofore Where similar members of approximately the shape of member 20 of Figure 2 had been used on either side of the fan blade I it has been found that when either member is .035 thick, suicient reinforcement is given to the handle member II, the total reinforcing thickness being then .07". thickness or reinforcing has been found practicable for handle reinforcements, I desire to maintain such total thickness While nevertheless providing additional reinforcement for the base I3 of the perforation by the peculiar formation of only one of the handle reinforcement members. Accordingly, I prefer in actual use to make the back reinforcing member I4 comprising the perforation reinforcement I8 substantially thicker than the front reinforcement 20; and I have found in actual use that a thickness for the back reinforcement member of .045" and a corresponding thickness of the front reinforcing member of .025" will provide substantial reinforcement for the base I3 of the perforation While at the same time providing the necessary .07" reinforcement for the handle I I.

It is obvious, of course, that the member I4 Where desired may be used on the front or the Since such total back of the handle blade or that two members of the type I4 may be used on either side thereof or that a single reinforcement may be provided on one side only of the fan, said single reinforcement having a formation of the type I4.

The peculiar arrangement of my member I4 establishes a use thereof which need not necessarily be restricted to fan handles alone. Thus, it may be used to provide a reinforcement for any other type of instrument having a handle with a perforation therein.

Accordingly, I do not intend to be limited by the specific disclosure herein but only by the appended claim.

What I claim is:

In a hand fan comprising a blade and an integral handle member, said handle member having a thumb hole, a reinforcing member comprising means extending from the handle to the blade and additional means for reinforcing said thumb hole, said additional means being integral with said reinforcing member and consisting of a curvature thereof partially surrounding said thumb hole at the base portion thereof nearest the handle and extending contiguous to and along the periphery on each lateral side only of the thumb hole, thus providing reinforcement 

